Blood Sucker
QJ opened his hud, frowning at the numerous messages he was receiving. He created a private entry point and set permissions to singular.
[Security Message] Your private entry point is being accessed by the individual you invited.
"Let them in." QJ sat at his desk, waiting momentarily until a surprised guest arrived. "How bad is it?"
Ringo's blue eyes scanned the room she arrived in. "I've never entered a VRP space with my gaming avatar before."
QJ shrugged slightly. "Nearly everyone I'm friends with is virtual."
Ringo glanced out the open doorway. "The forums are on fire with this incident." She chuckled softly. "What the hell is going on?"
"I can answer that." Anna appeared in the doorway; she'd been in her room monitoring everything. "There was an attempt to capture QJ."
Ringo raised an eyebrow. "I'm not tracking. How is that possible?"
Anna entered the room, sitting on the edge of QJ's bed. "I'm not the scientist, but the working theory is that someone tried to lock QJ into his avatar. And then take the avatar."
"Are you f... Are you kidding? Is that possible?" Ringo glanced at QJ, who was watching the conversation from his desk. "Couldn't they just come back here and unplug you?"
"Normally, I'd say yes." Anna needed more firsthand knowledge of the situation to guess. "I can say this. The artifact in question was a one-time use. No one close to it can log out even after it was discharged."
"Sorry, Ringo." QJ felt a headache coming on. "My family can be a bit overprotective."
Ringo laughed nervously. "Mine is like that too... But they aren't backed up by an army of elite NPCs."
"It has its pluses and minuses," QJ admitted.
It was after midnight before QJ went to sleep; by the time he woke up, dozens of messages were waiting for him. Sometime during the night, Fora returned to Ravenwood, lifting the lockdown around Setters Canyon.
A short while later, QJ dried off in his bathroom. He could hear his mom talking with Naomi Gajendra; they paused when he walked into the kitchen a few minutes later. Naomi's face smiled at him through the kitchen hud. "Morning QJ, you okay?"
QJ nodded, "so... to stop someone from logging off, you have to use some sort of neural inhibitor, right? Altering the interaction between consciousness and the neural headset."
Naomi stared at him, "Tal... please drag this kid out of the gaming world and make him go to MIT as you did. How did I let him escape my lab!"
Tal said nothing. She hugged him close and then released him. "Trust me. I've brought that up many times."
QJ continued without missing a beat. "Wouldn't the neural interface be too complex to initialize the procedure? It would take months."
Naomi nodded in agreement. "That seems to be the stopping point."
QJ pursed his lips. "They could use a hallucinogen. Altering the starting point and establishing control quicker, it would be tenuous to start, but eventually, it might work."
Naomi gripped her dark hair with her hands as if threatening to pull it out. "QJ! Since you left, three lovely assistants have joined my department. You can have them all."
Tal laughed from the fridge and placed a glass of orange juice before QJ. "My son is above such obvious attempts at bribery."
QJ shook his head in disagreement. "No, I'm not. Send me their holos, and we'll talk."
Naomi smiled at him."Of course. Right away."
Tal slid over a plate of egg-bake and sat beside him. "Feel up to attending school today?"
QJ nodded. "Yep. I'm more worried about Lark than anything else."
"You'll have to take some protection. Who knows if there's a second artifact." Tal watched for his reaction, and unexpectedly, he nodded.
"Who is going to guard me?" QJ hoped it wouldn't be the Silverleaf women; they were too forward.
"Leah and Mojo are sending their Shadowfiends to watch over you."
"Jali and Bali? Awesome." QJ polished off his food and put the dish in the washer. "Let me know if you find anything out, mom."
Tal nodded and gave her son a kiss on the cheek. "Songbird at lunch, please."
QJ nodded, "Bye, Naomi, don't forget those holos!"
Jali and Bali were already at the Gaming platform when QJ arrived. The two shadowfiends bounded toward him when he came into view, sending Exodus patrons scurrying for cover. QJ held out a hand straight in front of him. "Stop!"
The two enormous panthers put the brakes on just before they ran him over. Jali pushed a soft black nose into his face, purring loudly when QJ scratched his ears.
He had grown up with the two beasts; the three owners had slowly developed all the Shadowfiend abilities over the past two decades. As bodyguards, they were extremely formidable. Bali pushed her sister aside and nuzzled his face, sending him an image of young QJ playing with them in the Ravenwood fountain.
QJ laughed and pushed her head away. "You're not supposed to do that, remember?" The big cats could send flash images when fighting. They would use terrifying scenes to incite fear.
They followed QJ as he entered the Academy and headed toward the stables.
"You guys remember Scorch? Bet he'll be happy to see you."
A few minutes later, both cats stood on their hind legs and peered into the stall as QJ took care of the morning chores. Scorch nosed them playfully; he had no fear of the shadowfiends.
After greeting Scorch, they entered the Academy. Jali stopped beside the front entrance while Bali followed him to his class. Walking down the hallway, the academy students couldn't hide the shock at seeing the sleek black cat padding softly alongside QJ. She stopped at the door to QJ's class and sat down while he went inside.
Ringo was leaning against her desk when he entered. She had received a "courtesy call" from Anna saying that extra security would be needed because of the current threat.
"Morning QJ, how does it feel to be done with Show Stopper?"
"Of all the first questions I thought you'd ask this morning, that wasn't on my top ten." QJ grinned in relief. "It feels like my hands have been untied." He glanced down at his desk; a small box with blue wrapping paper was sitting on it. "Who left this?"
"Maya did, although she didn't say what it was for."
QJ opened the box and looked at the contents. "Um..." He looked up, his face showing surprise. Inside was a note printed neatly on silver paper and some chocolates.
"You looked surprised, QJ," Ringo walked towards his desk and peered inside.
"Yep... It's a very nice surprise ." QJ took out the note, stowed it away, then picked up one of the chocolates and tasted it. "Woah... These are really good."
Ringo reached in and took one, "sharing, right?"
"No, put that back ..."
"Best to share, QJ." She popped the chocolate in her mouth, briefly closing her eyes while chewing. "That is very good indeed."
QJ closed the box and stowed it in his desk. "Fine, but I expect compensation."
Ringo stared at him for a moment. "Not going to read the note?"
QJ shrugged, "I'll read it later."
Slowly the class filtered in, some of the students showed caution or even fear walking past the shadowfiend. However, a few stopped to pet the beast or scratched his ears.
"Take your seats, please." Ringo had to remind the cat lovers by the door that class was about to begin.
"Unfortunately, due to a recent incident, we'll be shadowed by the two large cats you've seen. Rest assured, they are quite harmless and are here to protect."
Several hands were raised immediately, but Ringo ignored them and addressed the class. "I personally talked to Leah Fintree this morning. One of the Songbirds, an NPC named Lark, was abducted yesterday in Setters Canyon while exploring. The area was locked down to search for clues as to her whereabouts."
"One of the Songbirds? Who could take one of them?" Lotte asked.
"I can answer that," QJ replied. "Apparently, a prison crystal was used; it's a high-level artifact capable of trapping an NPC inside."
QJ brought up the guild interface while Ringo answered a few more questions; Leeta had leveled up and could finally leave her starter city.
"Okay, everyone, shall we look at how things stand?" Ringo activated the Leader Board.
[Top Guild Level]
1) Old Skool-Lvl 13.5
2) One Problem 10.6
3) Chupa Lupa 8.5
[Class Leaderboard]
Range Rider: Sexy Dexy-Lvl 13
Gunfighter: Oldman Crane-Lvl 16
Brave: Laffy Taffy-Lvl-9
Tracker: Carlotti Hottie-Lvl 12
Shaman: Dead Mimi-Lvl 13
Field Medic: Suga Pie-Lvl 12
Wrangler: Kingslayer QJ-Lvl 10
Scout: Cactus Flower Lvl 11
Commanchero: Breeze-Lvl 11
Cavalry: Iron Lou-Lvl 13
Raider: Devil Woman-Lvl 13
Gambler: Pinnacle-Lvl 1
[Top Five OverAll]
1) Oldman Crane
2) Sexy Dexy
3) Iron Lou
4) Sunny Meadow
5) Dead Mimi
"Looks much the same. Old Skool is pulling away. Don't worry about that; they bear all the earmarks of a professional guild."
Ringo walked down the center aisle, "Our lone Field Medic can finally leave her starter city. You're with me today, Leeta."
Leeta smiled sweetly, "Oh, okay!"
QJ couldn't help but stare; Leeta was an average-looking girl until she smiled. She had short brown hair and dimples, reminding him of Anna. "Welcome aboard, Leeta."
"QJ, Breeze, and Lotte, you are with us also. We need to get some levels on Leeta so we can attempt 10-person raids." Ringo glanced around the classroom, "any questions before we start?"
The freshmen GnG class slowly disappeared from the classroom, one by one, until only the five were left.
Ringo glanced at the enormous black panther in the doorway. "Will we be able to hunt properly with your two friends?"
QJ nodded. "They can use stealth. So we won't even see them. Also, they won't interfere with normal grouping, even if we wipe."
Breeze stared at the cat next to the door, "How do I get one of those?"
QJ laughed at the question, which he had heard many times before. "Well, the two in the Academy belong to Mora Jol and Leah Fintree."
Ringo pulled up a map of the area they were targeting. "Let's get ready. This time, we are heading to the Skareth Swamps. "They are level 15 elites, so their XP will be great. We should be fine as long as we have single pulls."
"No worries." QJ zoomed out on the map, "so take the portal to Skavek and head east. It will take me a few minutes to catch up."
[Welcome to Guns and Gore, the Phoenix Server.]
Location: Setters Canyon, 18km SE of Laredo.
Time: 0801 hours
Server Population: 9,688 Your current level is 10.
The group arrived at the edge of a large swamp; there were various beasts, most of them in groups of two or three.
"Woah, that's a lot of XP." Breeze glanced at QJ, "you can give us singles, right?"
QJ nodded, "singles, doubles, triples. Don't worry so much."
He heard Lotte's laugh, "he's just joking."
"Two minutes; ready yourself, and I'll start this show." QJ extended a hand, palm up. "Come."
A spider appeared on the ground before him a moment later. It seemed to be primarily bee, but the legs were definitely arachni. In addition to the spider legs, it had two delicate-looking arms striped orange and black.
[Cleo]
Level 22
HP 1250/1250
Strength 30
Agility 60
Stamina 28
BR:10
He knelt and touched her antennaed head. "Wow, look at you. You didn't eat the boys or anything, right?"
She waved her arms delicate arms slowly in front of her.
*Cleo has cast summons.*
The two Cider spiders appeared before her and had grown quite a bit.
Cider Spider
Level 20
HP 1000/1000
Strength 40
Agility 25
Stamina 35
BR:7
Cider Spider
Level 20
HP 1000/1000
Strength 40
Agility 25
Stamina 35
BR:7
"Oh, I see. We are going to talk about this later, Cleo." QJ glanced back at the group. "Ready?"
Ringo was staring at him; she had her single dark braid in her hand and was twirling it. "QJ... where the hell did you get three spider pets?"
"From a Spider Queen," QJ answered.
Breeze wiggled her eyebrows at QJ. "Of course! I want one or two. That one looks more like a bee."
Lotte bent and examined Cleo closer. "This one looks really tough. She's a caster, right?"
*Cleo has cast Arachni Predator*
All Allies receive + 40 ATK, 30 percent Haste.
"Nice buff, Cleo." He walked to the edge of the swamp and examined their hunting grounds.
Ringo followed; she pointed to a nearby island. "Let's clear a path there and then figure things out."
[Group: QJ] Incoming!
*Lasso*
An Elite Vicious Croc has been roped and is closing on your position
*Kneecap*
An Elite Vicious Croc has been slowed by forty percent.
*Breeze has activated Blood Feud*
An Elite Vicious Croc has been taunted.
*Quick Shot*
Lotte has hit target for 1,252 damage.
*Quick Shot*
Ringo has hit target for 2,132 damage.
*Aimed Shot*
(Head-Shot Bonus)
QJ has hit target for 6,230 damage.
Fire scorches your target for 1,246 damage.
*Breeze has activated Turoc Mach'tu*
An Elite Vicious Croc has been hit for 923 damage.
An Elite Vicious Croc has been stunned.
*Hot Pack*
Leeta has healed Breeze for 2050 hp.
*Double Direct Shot*
Ringo has hit target for 2123 damage and 1727 damage.
*Direct Shot*
Lotte has hit target for 1322 damage.
An Elite Iguana has hit Ringo for 850 damage!
[Group: QJ] The hell... Adds!
QJ glanced west; several mobs were running toward them.
[Group: Ringo] Use an AE taunt, Breeze! Keep our Chero healed up!
*Field Pack*
Leeta has healed Ringo for 1880 hp.
*Kneecap*
An Elite Iguana has been slowed by 40 percent.
[Group: Breeze] Shit, more incoming. We've been trained.
Breeze spotted a group running by them, deliberately handing off a half dozen mobs they had aggroed.
*Breeze has activated Blood Feud*
An Elite Iguana has been taunted.
[Group: Ringo] Damn them! Bastards!
Ringo cursed at the half-dozen mobs charging at them.
[Group: QJ] Getting us out of here.
QJ has activated *Evasion*
High above the group, a half dozen stealthed Winged Assassins circled the area, their eyes glowing red.
"Captain! That group deliberately put those mobs on them." Maia watched the heat signatures from at least a half dozen Elite's charge at QJ's group.
Merci scowled in disgust. "Heroes are often very nonchalant about death since they are immortal in other worlds." She watched as QJ's group escaped with an evac. "We are not to interfere."
Maia brought up her hud and located QJ's signal, "North of our position now, near the center of the swamp."
"The young prince would be upset if he knew about the locators in his gear. At any rate, take the squad and continue observing." Merci extended her bone spikes as she slowly descended.
"He's not a prince, Captain." Maia knew it was pointless to say. To the Assassin Queen, QJ was the son of a peerless King. "You aren't coming with us?"
"I'll catch up; first, I will have a word with our friends."
Merci banked and headed downward.
"Captain, we aren't supposed to interfere." Maia sighed as she watched her Captain close in on the group.
"QJ is long gone, so this couldn't be considered interference. So I'll only kill them a few times each."
QJ ended up on the bottom of a pile of bodies. Ringo, Breeze, Lotte, and Leeta were stacked on top of him like firewood in that order.
"No rush or anything; you're all very light," he muttered from the bottom of the pile.
Slowly they untangled themselves, Ringo being the last one to get off; she gave QJ a hand up. "Thanks for cushioning our fall like that; very heroic." His teacher gave him a toothy smile.
QJ rolled his eyes. "Hmm... this isn't good."
They were standing at the entrance to a deep, dark hole with stairs leading down.
An ominous sign nearby read, "Crypt of Despair."
Breeze patted QJ on the back.
[Group: Breeze] Good thing you had that scroll. I'm about to level up.
QJ noticed Cleo and the boys nearby.
[Group: QJ] Let's get to it. I hate wasting time.
Ringo looked at the crypt. "Shall we try our hand?"
QJ brought up his hud, and a moment later, Anna's face smiled at him. "Hey Nan, could you quickly look up the Crypt of Despair? Just want to know the level requirements.
Anna nodded and did a quick search. "Six different floors, level 16-18 elites."
[Group: Breeze] I can tank that.
Anna continued her brief. "There are four halls on each level. To advance to the next level, you must kill the floor boss. It's considered cake for a standard group of level 16s."
"Thanks, Nan. I owe you one." QJ cut comm and faced his group. "Get ready. I'm going to start pulling."
[Group: Ringo] So brave, I like it.
The group slowly worked their way through all four halls; each hall had six Elites. In the last hall was a 20-level Boss, Crimson the Hungry.
Ringo checked her guns.
[Group: Ringo] Boss is a bit high, but we might be able to handle it."
[Group: QJ} First kills often bring some pleasant surprises.
Leeta had gone up two levels from the high-end mobs; she was close to 11.
[Group: Leeta] I want to try.
[Group: Breeze] Before we start, is Crimson a male or female? I can't really tell."
Breeze had her hatchet in one hand and was staring at the boss.
[Group: Lotte] We can always check after if you're still curious...
*Cleo has cast Arachni Predator*
All Allies receive + 40 ATK, 30 percent Haste.
*Kneecap*
Crimson the Hungry has been slowed by forty percent.
*Breeze has activated Blood Feud*
Crimson the Hungry has been taunted.
*Quick Shot*
Lotte has hit target for 1,850 damage.
*Quick Shot*
Ringo has hit target for 2,120 damage.
*Aimed Shot*
(Head-Shot Bonus)
QJ has hit target for 7,730 damage.
Fire scorches your target for 1546.
*Stinger*
Cleo has hit target for 13,322 damage, 8 poison counters applied.
Cider Spider has hit target for 8,354 damage.
Cider Spider has hit target for 9,200 damage.
*Hot Pack*
Leeta has healed Breeze for 2220 hp.
*Cleo's Parlor*
Crimson the Hungry has been bound and cannot move for 3 seconds.
*Six-Gun Fan*
Ringo has emptied her gun into target for 1244 damage, 1351 damage, and 1534 damage.
*Six-Gun Fan*
Lotte has emptied her gun into target for 1655 damage, 2301 damage, and 2914 damage.
I MAY DIE, BUT MY LEGACY WILL LIVE ON!!!
*Crimson the Hungry has cast Summon Target: [Ringo]*
The dark-haired gunfighter instantly appeared next to the dieing Vampire; it sunk his teeth into Ringo's neck.
*Aimed Shot* [Critical Hit]
(Head-Shot Bonus)
QJ has hit target for 21,550 damage
Fire scorches your target for 4,310 damage.
[Crimson the Hungry has been slain]
*Hot Pack* [Critical Heal]
Leeta has healed Ringo for 8654 hp.
QJ advanced slowly and helped his teacher to her feet; her face was ghostly white and very unsteady.
[Group: QJ]You okay, Ringo?
Ringo nodded and rubbed her neck where the puncture wounds were still visible.
[Group: Ringo] That was the scariest thing...
She kicked the dead boss's corpse.
[Group: Ringo] Damn bloodsucker, let's see what he dropped.
QJ linked the items to the group.
[Group: QJ] Shit...
Night Stalker [Vampire Only]
Medium Armor
+20 Strength
+20 Accuracy
+20 Agility
Battle Rating 12
Ring of Darkness [Vampire Only]
Temporarily Fade from view.
+15 Perception
+15 Critical Hit
Battle Rating 12
Breeze shook her head as she read the stats.
[Group: Breeze] Now they're just teasing us. Can we even sell it?
[Group: Lotte] I leveled up again! Thanks for bringing me.
[Group: Ringo] Not a bad turnaround; might as well call it a morning.
Ringo kicked the corpse an extra time, watching as her group ported back to town one at a time until it was her and QJ.
"Might as well equip the gear now." QJ took a step closer. "Excuse the inspection."
"What? No QJ..." Ringo grabbed her student's shoulder.
Ringo [Cursed Vampirism]
Gunslinger: Level 14
"Got you good, didn't he." QJ shook his head as he opened up his hud. A moment later, Anna's smiling face was looking at him.
"Heya QJ, I kinda like that you keep calling me." Anna sipped her coffee. "What ya need, handsome?"
QJ smiled at her cheerfulness. "Need you to find out about vampirism in GnG. Got a guildmate who was recently bitten.
Anna leaned closer. "Wow, that's interesting. I'll check it out and let you know after lunch."
"Thanks, Nan, you're the best." QJ cut comm and turned back toward his teacher.
She was breathing hard, her red lips parting as she stared at QJ. "Port quickly, QJ. I'm feeling the urge to bite you."
QJ shrugged and rolled up his sleeve. "On the arm is fine right?"
"Then you will be infected too; just port out quickly." Small fangs protruded from Ringo's mouth, and her blue eyes were as cold as ice as she stared at him.
"My [Indomitable Will] ability gives me immunity to curses." QJ smiled at his teacher. "Don't go crazy; just a sip."
Ringo stared at his arm, her face unreadable as she bent her lips to his forearm. "Please excuse me then, QJ."
Without another word, she sunk her fangs into his arm, causing him to jump slightly. QJ watched for a moment but then turned away quickly. There was something wildly sensual about the scene. He tried to think about other things for a few minutes until she finally stopped.
Ringo quickly donned the gear that had dropped from the boss, her color returned to normal, and her fangs receded.
"Thank you, QJ."
"Now, you owe me lunch." QJ took a step back and ported back to town.
Ringo nodded and activated her return portal. "See ya back in class."
A moment after they left, Cleo crawled out of the shadows. She had fled in fear when the Vampire had attacked Ringo. Cleo felt anger at herself for abandoning her master; slowly, she approached the dead Vampire, overcome with the need to consume the enemy.